Chance me for Princeton?

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 04:27 PM

Hi! I'm so grateful to anyone who reads this forum and might take a moment of their time to tell me my chances of admission to Princeton University!
I am a white female from New York City who will be a senior this year. My family is middle- or upper middle-class and my parents' combined yearly income is about $200,000 to $250,000. I attend the 4th best private high school in th nation, where nobody graduates with above a 3.9 GPA. My school does not offer AP or honors classes.
It has been my dream since Freshman year to go to Princeton. Following is a list of my grades, scores, accomplishments, etc.
Academics:
Freshman year I had two B's, two B+'s, and two A-'s, plus an A in Studio Art I. I took English, Geometry, 20th Century World History, Biology, Spanish II, Studio Art I, and Latin II. It was my first year at my school. Because of how difficult the school is, all classes are basically the equivalent of an honors class, and colleges know this.
Sophomore year I had all A's. I took English, Algebra II, Chemistry, Spanish III, Studio Art II, and American History.
Junior year I again had all A's. I took English, Pre-Calculus With Extended Exploration (what our school calls more advanced math classes), Physics, Advanced Biology (the equivalent of AP biology), Studio Art III, and Spanish IV.
This year I am planning to take Advanced Chemistry (again, AP equivalent), AB Calculus, Spanish V, English, Advanced Physics (again, AP equivalent), and Studio Art IV.
SAT's and SAT II's:
I received a "5" on both the Biology and Chemistry SAT II's.
I received a "800" on the SAT writing, a "790" on the critical reading, and a "780" on the math, making my total score a 2370.
Sports:
I've been on Varsity track and cross country since freshman year. I joined varsity squash sophomore year. My cross country 5K times (and also my track times, but I only want to run cross country in college) are fast enough to get me recruited to a Division I school. I am the captain of all three teams.
Extra Curriculars, Programs, etc:
-Head of my school's environmental action club, member for four years.
-I've been on my school's Model Congress delegation since sophomore year.
-Part of the National Youth Leadership Forum on medicine this summer.
-Part of the STRIVE Running Program this summer in Kenya, where we ran with the world's best long-distance runners: the Kenyans. This was not a typical community service trip; it was a chance to learn the secrets of running from the masters.
-I have done Princeton's cross country camp last summer and this summer.
-I applied to the Columbia Science Honors Program in sophomore year and got accepted for junior year. I take Human Physiology classes there and will continue this year.
-I volunteer at NYU in the pediatric department (to get a little experience).
-I am a peer-leader at my school, which means this year I will mentor a group of freshmen.
To conclude, I just want to say that I know you need a "spike" to get into a good college like Princeton (meaning you need to be focused at something and be especially good at it), and my "spikes" are running and medicine. I try to do only activities related to those things, but I only do what I love. Do you think I have a chance to get into Princeton? Thanks so much for your time!!

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 04:48 PM

Oops, typo! I received an "800" on the Biology and Chemistry SAT II's! (And a "5" on the AP biology exam.)

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 04:58 PM

Wow, I thought I mentioned this, but I must have skipped it. I'm going to apply EA to Princeton. Do I stand a chance?
I also forgot to mention that I'm the co-head of my school's athletic association.

texvic · 07-12-2012, 05:33 PM

your ECs and scores are fantastic! Especially your athletics! No one can say for sure if anyone is going to be accepted to Princeton because each year they look for different applicants, but with your school's prestige, your scores, and your amazing EC's (especially since you show passion and longevity) I think you definitely have a good shot. Good luck!!

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 05:38 PM

Thanks so much!! I was a little worried about my freshman B's and B+'s hurting me, but considering the difficulty of my school I think I'll be ok. Also, I heard that Princeton doesn't even look at freshman grades when calculating your GPA. Do you know if that's true?! Thanks again for your input

Avalde4 · 07-12-2012, 05:38 PM

I don't see why you wouldn't get in especially since your applying EA. As long as your essays are interesting and make you sound like a good person who can be creative as well then I think you're practically in since you've even done a program with them. Oh and make sure that your Rec letters are good. (:

Please chance back. (:

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 05:45 PM

Thanks! I'll chance you back. I think I'll have good recs and hopefully good essays (I'm a pretty good writer). Thanks again for your input!

OsakaDad · 07-12-2012, 05:45 PM

Great chance. Just make sure that you apply to at least 10 back up schools too with the regular breakdown of Reach, Match and Safety. You need all categories. I've seen a number of kids with similar grades and scores but were reject by all universities because they only applied to multiple Reach schools. Usually, they ended up at a CC or in a minimum wage job for a year or two. Some schools are reaches for EVERYONE. This includes all the Ivies, MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, top LAC's, etc.

So, pick a few really good alternatives that are not in the categories above.

Anticipated major? I must have missed it in your post....

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 05:47 PM

My anticipated major is pre-med (and I want to run cross country there too). I think I put that in there but I might have forgotten

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 05:55 PM

For other schools, since early action is non-binding, I was thinking of Columbia, NYU, UChicago, Duke, and Johns Hopkins (Duke and JH being my favorites out of this list).

nosleepforme · 07-12-2012, 05:56 PM

I don't think that your freshman grades will affect you due to your consistent improvement through sophomore and junior years. Your EC's are impressive, they show your passion and drive. This will ultimately help you stand out amongst the other applicants with the same or similar test scores, which by the way, are excellent.

And because you're applying EA, I definitely think that you have a high chance of getting in.

iBelieveSo · 07-12-2012, 05:59 PM

i heard princeton doesn't count your freshman grades? don't quote me on that though..i just remember hearing that once

you have solid ec's and great sat scores, so i think with good recs and essays you have a really good chance of getting in EA.

good luck to you too!

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 06:01 PM

Yay! Thanks so much, I've been really stressing about this. I'll just concentrate on getting more straight A's this year and hopefully I'll get in!

PrincetonPreppy · 07-12-2012, 06:02 PM

@iBelieveSo I heard that too, about Princeton not counting freshman grades! Thanks for your input!

william95 · 07-12-2012, 06:07 PM

You have good GPA (upward trend) and excellent SATs. If you could get Princeton to look at you for track I'd say you'd be a shoe-in, otherwise its a low reach most likely (HYPS always are). The National Youth Leadership Forum is kind of a scam btw, pay an exorbitant price for it and get to go. I don't think listing it as an EC will help you at all. Otherwise EC's look pretty good too, leadership positions are nice.